Yahoo enters mobile messaging space with Livetext

Yahoo becomes the latest entrant in the mobile messaging app space with Livetext, which allows users to send videos with text on top, but without audio. The audio-free approach to video-messaging is what will set Livetext apart from the many apps already in this space, Arjun Sethi, senior director for product management told ET's Gulveen Aulakh. Yahoo may consider looking at optimizing the new app - which requires 3G and LTE networks - for 2G which is the mainstay in India, but Sethi is bullish on the 3G and LTE adoption going forward. Edited excerpts:

Q: Why has Yahoo brought out a messaging app now when the space is extremely crowded and leaders defined?

A: At a high level, the foundation of Yahoo has always been centered at communications, one of the pedestals being Yahoo Mail, Yahoo Messenger. We're very strongly behind it because of two core components - live video and sound, which we removed. It becomes a unique product. So it's not about being first or last, it's about the best product experience. We wanted to build a new way to communicate on a device which is powerful, becoming advanced and is always connected.

Q: What is the uptake in developed markets? How many unique users use Livetext?

A: We've done a lot of early testing. Once people move to Livetext, they couldn't think of going back to any other services because they felt old and formal, but ours felt natural even without audio. We've been able to take it to a lot of networks and people fairly quickly. We launched it on July 10 in Hong Kong, Taiwan and subsequently in US, Canada, Germany, France and UK, early this month. It's a new born baby, so we're focused on improving product quality and people love the product. A lot of the work that needs to be done starts now after testing the markets.

Q: Would Yahoo consider optimizing Livetext for video on 2G, which is the dominant network in India?

A: We only support 3G networks and above, besides Wi-Fi. We'll always continue to improve the product, so we'll see how we can improve video quality on lower latency networks. Never say never, for the time being we're focused on 3G and above. India is among the fastest growing markets for Android, for data, and that is exciting. So, we're counting on as more customers, who use our products, to move to 3G and LTE.

Q: Are you concerned about Livetext in India where discussions of possible regulation of over-the-top (OTT) apps are going on?

A: We will always focus on what is happening in each network and each market and follow it, especially in India. As leaders in this space, building this product, our goal is going to be to make sure that every user is able to use the app, freely over 3G and Wi-Fi. If that means that if there is work for us to do in that area, we will do it.

Q: Why make a video-messaging app without audio?

A: A lot of video calling products offer just that. You end up having to set it up in a location where it is okay culturally to use it and it's courteous to your surroundings. In video, you can see emotions, body language and expressions. But sound becomes intrusive, because you can't use a video calling service anywhere because there are lot of people around. But it's much easier to communicate on our service - you can text back and forth without anyone knowing that you're on video.

Q: Is Livetext for Windows OS future consideration?

A: Windows Phone is another emerging OS that we're carefully looking at and as time goes on, we'll focus on other operating systems as well. Right now, we're seeing a lot of excitement for Android and iOS, growing in India specifically.

Q: What are the key learnings from Yahoo that has helped in building this app?

One of the great things that Yahoo's done as it moved into the 'Mobile First' world, it brought in a lot of new talent. We were also build a lot of new product and technology from scratch, including this app, from the learnings in the past such as low latency networks, video connections, messaging within milliseconds, peer-to-peer encryption and privacy. A lot of mentorship and guidance has been around on how you build brand new experiences based on the ones in the past. In a mobile first world, we're building the gestures of mobile experience and building a product from scratch. With Livetext, we've built a brand new behaviour and you will continue to see such innovations from Yahoo because we're mobile first.